Nov. 5, 2018, 5:26 a.m.

Jacqueline Purdy of Inglewood waits for her turn to vote early at the East Los Angeles Library on Oct. 27. (Francine Orr / Los Angeles Times)

As Californians consider the complicated questions posed by the propositions on the 2018 statewide ballot, they can take some solace in knowing that the list could have been much longer.

A handful of proposals were pulled off the ballot; one was removed by the courts, another was canceled after a legislative deal in Sacramento, a third was just abandoned by its backers, who faced a potentially expensive campaign. But 11 other propositions remain, several sparking multimillion-dollar advertising campaigns that will flood the airwaves and voter mailboxes through election day.

Nov. 5, 2018, 4:07 a.m.

The Nov. 6. midterm elections are shaping up as a referendum on Donald Trump’s presidency, and California is one of the main battlefields as Democrats try to seize control of the House.

The party that holds the presidency typically plays defense in a midterm vote, but Trump’s unpopularity in much of California is driving an extraordinary surge of voter hostility toward Republicans.

Democratic candidates here are raising staggering sums of money, driven mostly by increased enthusiasm by donors on the left and aided by ActBlue, the online fundraising platform for progressive candidates.

Nov. 5, 2018, 3:08 a.m.

The midterm is fast approaching. How many races are actually competitive? Which polls should you trust? And why is California so important this year? Here’s what you need to know before the Nov. 6 election.